Vancouver players return home from 2012 Homeless World Cup in Mexico

Vancouver players returned home from Mexico on Tuesday night after an exciting ten days at the 2012 Homeless World Cup. Natasha Fox, Rahul Kumar, Krista Nickason, and Fabian Ulloa from the Vancouver Street Soccer League joined other players from around the country to represent Canada’s men’s and women’s teams at the tournament.

In addition to the Homeless World Cup trophy, the tournament was split into a series of other cup matches. Canada’s men’s team joined France, Germany, Greece, Switzerland, USA, Guatemala, and Morocco to compete for the Homeless World Cup: Community Cup.

The team battled hard to beat out Germany, Greece, Switzerland and Morocco, and was left to face USA in the third/fourth place final match. After a fast-paced, exhilirating match, everything came down to a nail biting penalty shootout. Despite the pressure, Canada rose to the occasion and came out standing as third place victors.

The women’s team competed equally as hard, and with great teamwork and sportsmanship took 12th place in the Women’s Cup. The team beat out USA in the group-stage match, and Amanda Adam’s from the Kelowna Kodiaks' sunk a fantastic penalty shot to win the group-stage match against Guatemala.

When asked about the tournament Adam’s states “it was just an incredible experience. The camaraderie of all the teams was amazing. We all have our differences and come from different places all over the world, but on the pitch everyone is the same."

The Vancouver Street Soccer League would also like to thank Chris Hellewell, Colin Askey, Adam Favel, and Debbie Krull for escorting the team and making their experience one of a lifetime.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC would like to congratulate both Canadian teams in their triumphant efforts, and true sportsmanship. They represented our city and country with pride.